In a sports competition such as a sprint race in athletics, each athlete starts from a starting block. In high-level competitions, it is necessary to measure the reaction time of each athlete at the instant of leaving the starting block. This is generally performed by electronic or optical devices connected to a base station for the determination of any false start. According to the rules of these athletic competitions, it is specified that a reaction time below a time threshold of 0.1 s must be considered a false start.
Currently, two technologies are principally provided for measuring the reaction times of athletes from a starting block. One of these technologies consists of measuring the force with which the athlete presses against a block of the starting block with at least one foot, as it is described in patent EP 2 532 400 B1. Another of these technologies consists of determining the backward acceleration of the block, against which one of the athlete's feet rests and presses at the start, as described in the patent application WO 99/32889 A2. According to these two technologies, it is possible to detect the reaction of each athlete before their movement at the instant of departure is even visible to the human eye. In the event of a false start, the two technologies mentioned above can provide a graphic representation of the signals of the sensor arranged on the starting block as a function of time. This enables a judge or judges to consult the graphs to determine a false start. However, these technologies do not allow detection of every type of movement of the athlete for determination of a false start, which constitutes a drawback.
It should also be noted that when an array of sensors is arranged only on the starting block, this does not allow every movement, particularly in an upper part of the body of the athlete, to be detected that is likely to enable a false start to be determined. Moreover, it is very difficult to differentiate between the most significant variations in pressure on the starting block of a strong athlete compared to a weaker athlete such as a junior to be able to assess a false start.
At the instant the starter gives the signal to prepare for the start, an athlete can still move until he presses against the block and is then considered ready for the start. Any movement that takes place before 0.1 s of the start signaled by a starting gun of the starter must be considered a false start. This means that a movement of the athlete resulting from a loss of contact of the athlete's hand on the ground is considered a false start after the signal of the starting gun. Conversely, any movement of the athlete before the signal for preparation by the starter with a disconnection in time of the measurement device will be considered preparation movements before starting and must not be considered a false start. In this scenario, the athlete can be given merely a disciplinary warning.
A starting block for an athletics race is also known from patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,467,652. The starting block comprises a longitudinal anchor bar, on which are placed two bearing blocks for the athlete's feet respectively positioned on each side of the bar. Each block comprises an angularly adjustable bearing surface for a foot of an athlete. Each bearing surface is covered with a pressure pad of conductive elastomer construction. The sensors of the pressure pads are connected to a control and display module by electric cables to supply varying analog output signals depending on the measured pressure. A start signal for a race supplied by an indicator is transmitted via an electric cable to the module. The starting block is capable of measuring, recording and displaying the pressure levels detected on each bearing surface, the time that has passed between the start signal and the athlete's start as a function of the variation in the pressure measured on the blocks and indicate false starts. As indicated above, this does not allow detection of every type of movement of the athlete at the instant of departure to determine a false start, and this constitutes a drawback.
The patent application FR 2 089 076 can also be cited, which describes a device capable of determining a false start for a foot race. To achieve this, a contactor is fixed to a rear portion of a block of a starting block. This contactor controls an electronic circuit in order to signal any false start. Not every movement of the athlete at the instant of departure can be detected for determination of a false start, and this constitutes a drawback.